Beer Chicks introduce their brand-new downtown beer store, 8th Street Bottle Shop.

Yes, I still wanted to hold a grudge against 213 Downtown for banning me from Schmeven Schmand all those years ago. But there comes a time when a girl has just gotta tell herself, “Oh get over it already.” And when you throw in craft beer, the Beer Chicks, a 7-bar beer crawl and a brand-new downtown craft beer store, well that makes it all the more difficult (and silly) to hold a grudge.

I was invited to the 2nd Annual LA Craft Beer Crawl which meandered around Downtown LA through bars that are primarily known for their cocktails. The Beer Chicks had curated the taps which before had been stuff like Stella Artois and they invited renowned craft breweries like Taps, Stone Brewing, Craftsman and Firestone to spread the gospel of good beer to the event’s attendees.

Chelada coming right up!

Unfortunately I couldn’t stick around to enjoy the whole crawl, which went on til 8pm, since my ‘rents were in town, but I made a good show of it. With my beer buddy Lindsay of LAist we ran from bar to bar, trying to enjoy as much of the exclusive pours during the VIP hours as we could. Starting off at Golden Gopher, we checked out the Beer Chicks’ new beer store, 8th Street Bottle Shop (which is now open) and then enjoyed Drakes Aroma Coma and Cismontane‘s coffee-infused Citizen. Afterward it was off to 7G for Ommegang Aphrodite, then Las Perlas for the Raul Yrastorza’s Dusty Road Chelada which featured Uncommon Brewers Siamese Twin Ale. Since the food trucks weren’t coming out til 3pm and we were starving, we braved the wait (and drunk Lotharios) at Cole’s across the street where we shared some garlic fries with Stan of Drink Eat Travel and those wacky Noble Ale Works guys.

Noble Ale Works represent.

Wrapping up the crawl Linds and I adjourned to Cana for the Maui Brewing beer float with banana ice cream and Maui Coconut Porter and ran into LA Weekly‘s Pulitzer-Prize-winning food writer Jonathan Gold “holding up a wall” and answering culinary questions for $1. (Apparently Cana’s Allan Katz put up the sign over JGold’s head as a joke.) Needless to say, I asked a bunch and found out that no, LA Weekly won’t have a JGold cocktail event this year and that the Varnish is his fave spot for grabbing a cocktail.

Now you’d think it would be almost impossible to learn and drink a whole lotta beer at the same time, but it’s not! Here are 10 other things I managed to pick up during the crawl:

1. The Beer Chicks’ 8th Street Bottle Shop is priced competitively. Christina Perozzi did a lot of comparative shopping to come up with the pricing for her bottles which she says is priced lower than Whole Foods.

2. The beers at the bottle shop are basically categorized by style and then alphabetized. Prices are displayed under each bottle.

3. The employees manning the shop will be knowledgeable enough to help you pick out a beer for any occasion or dish.

4. According to Beer Chick Hallie Beaune, Cole Haan makes heels PERFECTLY comfortable for beer crawls.

5. I haven’t been single for awhile but that move when a guy stretches as an excuse to put an arm around me? STILL not sexy.

6. The distance from Golden Gopher to Las Perlas is actually not as far as it seems, only half a mile!

7. Jonathan Gold actually prefers wine (first) and cocktails (second). Beer? Not so much.

8. Untappd users now don’t have to wait 10 minutes to check in between beers. Crucial during beer crawls and beer fests.

9. You know how Eagle Rock Brewery has a women’s beer forum that meets every third Wednesday of the month? Well, Christina will be speaking at one such forum there soon so stay tune.

10. VIP tickets are $20 more than gen admission and absolutely worth it for the exclusive pourings and short lines. (Of course I got a media pass but believe me, worth it for the elbow room.)

More LA Craft Beer Crawl photos after the jump.

Jimmy and Yume Han of Beer Belly.

Beer Belly craft beer bar is opening in Koreatown this Friday, and it seems to possess all the elements of what make a beer bar great: 1) an impressive selection of affordably priced, handcrafted beer on taps; 2) tasty bar bites; 3) beer-serious owners; 4) knowledgeable beertenders; and 5) parking.

The Bruery's Mischief Gone Wild from Jimmy's private stash.

The owners, Jimmy and Yume Han, are so young, attractive and hip, I wondered what their intentions were for opening up such a place. But after interviewing them for LA Weekly’s Squid Ink, getting past their sound byte tendencies and learning of their passion for craft beer as well as checking out their new digs, I see that they’re really serious about it all. They may be fairly new to the beer world but they’re eager to learn, open to suggestions and always willing to try something new.

And the beer community has embraced them, garnering them advice from the best in the business, like Ryan Sweeney of the Surly Goat and Verdugo Bar, Mark Craftsman of Craftsman Brewing Company and of course the Beer Chick herself, Christina Perozzi, who had not only trained Beer Belly’s staff of beertenders but helped the Hans curate their tap selection. Although according to her, they already had a good grasp of beer and “get it.”

During my sneak peek visit last week, I got to check out what they’re planning to have on tap for their grand opening night this Friday: beauties like The Bruery’s Rugbrod and Craftsman Cabernale. At the time there was also Black Market Brown Ale, one of my new favorites, but Jimmy said he might have to switch it up since he’s been drinking that and the Eagle Rock Populist IPA while setting up the bar. Who could blame him? But I do really hope it’s still there for the opening.

Don't mind the dust. They're still setting up.

There will be a rotating list of beers on 12 taps which Jimmy promises will be recession-friendly, “nothing over $10.” And in the fridge is a selection of bottled beer like Rogue Chocolate Stout, Dogfish Head’s Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew as well as picks from Jimmy’s own private stash, a collection he’s amassed over the years with rarities like The Bruery’s Mischief Gone Wild.

For non drinkers who tag along with their beer-drinking friends, there is also a nice selection of artisanal sodas like Blenheim Ginger Ale (yay!) and Waialua Mango Soda. And a couple bottles of wine for those into that.

Naturally there will also be food, but a small and simple selection of shareable dishes. The night I went they had specially made boar bratwurst by Grindhaus Sausage Truck served with highly addictive onion stout jam that I wanted to use on EVERYthing. There was also asparagus, French fries with potato aioli featuring bacon fat and roasted beets and tofu salad with Asian pear and honey sesame vinaigrette. There was talk about meatball skewers but unfortunately they were not yet available.

Beer Belly bar bites. Say that 5x fast.

The bar is actually set up looking more like a restaurant than a beer bar. There aren’t bar stools at the bar or high tops, mayhaps due to license restrictions, but there is a drink rail. And seating is restaurant style with table seating at a bench along the wall and a couple of tables by the front, floor-to-ceiling window. It’ll seat 35 comfortably but 50 folks can squeeze in.

The space, designed by MAKE Architecture (who did Bodega Wine Bar), is beautiful and modern what with three different stains of mahogany on the walls and even ceilings, a very shiny concrete floor. Outside, striking street art by MR44 wraps around the exterior.

Beer Belly definitely stands out in this area of Korean barbecue joints, mom and pop shops and karaoke studios. A good thing considering it’s located off the street, tucked in away off the main drag. Hopefully, since it’s in walking distance of the Wiltern, possesses its own parking lot and offers a such a well-done beer list, it’ll be a destination for beer connoisseurs. Add to that that Biergarten, home of the Glutster burger and a decent beer selection of its own, is just up the street (less than a mile away) and you’ve got yourself a nice little beer bar crawl.

More photos of Beer Belly after the jump.

Beer Belly
532 S Western Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90020 (map)
(213) 387-2337
Facebook: Beer Belly
Twitter: @BeerBelly_LA